Book picks similar to
Countdown by Michael Atamanov


litrpg
science-fiction
sci-fi
fantasy

Warden


Alex Knight - 2018
     Playing as a unique class while surrounded by aliens, pirates and warring guilds, he and his squad are tasked with protecting new players and enforcing the rule of law. But Kaiden has other ideas; he is intent on proving his innocence. The keys to his freedom lie hidden in the game’s seedy underbelly. And as he’ll soon discover, the bloody trail that led to his arrest is more twisted than he could have ever imagined.

Into the Light


Christopher Johns - 2019
    A relentless galactic conqueror. One big ol' axe and a whole bag of magic. Chris and his friends had been hearing voices begging for help, but aren’t dreams supposed to stay dreams? When they finally answer the call, they’re pulled into a fantastic world with themes similar to modern role-playing games. The world of Brindolla. This is what every gamer has always wanted… right? There's one major problem: War. The big baddie of the universe has come to collect another planet for his relentless march. The Brindollan Gods only have the power to hold him back for a short while, which they can only hope will be long enough to give Chris and his buddies a fighting chance. Either this team gets rid of War’s vanguard of minions and generals, giving the Gods a chance to keep him out for good... or War comes for Earth. The group is ready to dive into combat, magic, and any other obstacles that come their way. No matter what needs to be done, Chris and his buddies will always do it together. Warning: This book contains profanity.

Memories


Stephan Morse - 2015
    All he wishes for is a distraction from the thoughts plaguing his waking hours. He dives in headfirst, unknowing of the AIs intentions. They offer him the chance to play as one of their own, a NPC deserving of a proper send off. What he discovers during the journey shakes Grant to his very core.

Columbus Day


Craig Alanson - 2016
    And that was the good news. The Ruhar hit us on Columbus Day. There we were, innocently drifting along the cosmos on our little blue marble, like the native Americans in 1492. Over the horizon come ships of a technologically advanced, aggressive culture, and BAM! There go the good old days, when humans only got killed by each other. So, Columbus Day. It fits. When the morning sky twinkled again, this time with Kristang starships jumping in to hammer the Ruhar, we thought we were saved. The UN Expeditionary Force hitched a ride on Kristang ships to fight the Ruhar, wherever our new allies thought we could be useful. So, I went from fighting with the US Army in Nigeria, to fighting in space. It was lies, all of it. We shouldn't even be fighting the Ruhar, they aren't our enemy, our allies are. I'd better start at the beginning....

Restart


Dan Sugralinov - 2018
    His only source of income is freelance writing (whenever he feels inspired enough to add another article to his less-than-popular blog). His wife has just walked out on him, leaving him without money, purpose, or food in the fridge.On the day his wife dumps him, Phil receives a mysterious piece of wetware. A game interface seems to have been implanted in his brain which allows him to see the world through the eyes of an RPG player. Now that Phil discovers his real-life stats, he can see they’re far below average. With 4 pt. Agility, 6 pt. Strength and 3 pt. Stamina, his most advanced life skill is playing one of the most epic RPG games of all times.Luckily, real-life stats can be leveled up just like virtual ones. But will it help Phil get his wife back? Can he stop being such a couch potato? Would the new game help him become fitter? Or more successful? Can his gaming skills finally come in handy in real life?Last but not least, can he find out who could have uploaded the mysterious game to his brain? And how is he supposed to deal with this unknown but apparently omnipotent force?

Forging Zero


Sara King - 2013
    Now they own us.The Legend of ZERO: Forging Zero is the epic journey of 14-year-old Joe Dobbs in a post-apocalyptic universe following a massive galactic empire's invasion of Earth. The oldest of the children drafted from humanity’s devastated planet, Joe is impressed into service by the alien Congressional Ground Force—and becomes the unwitting centerpiece in a millennia-long alien struggle for independence. Once his training begins, one of the elusive and prophetic Trith appears to give Joe a spine chilling prophecy that the universe has been anticipating for millions of years: Joe will be the one to finally shatter the vast alien government known as Congress. And the Trith cannot lie.…But first Joe has to make it through bootcamp.

Poor Man's Fight


Elliott Kay - 2013
    Congratulations! You have graduated high school. Your financial obligation is 67,879 credits. Please visit our loan officer as you exit."Tanner Malone never bought into military myths of honor and glory. He never wanted to wear a uniform or medals. Yet when family upheaval brings his otherwise stellar performance in school to a disastrous end, Tanner's plans for university lie in ruins. Facing homelessness and a mountain of debt, Tanner enlists in his home planet's tiny navy.It’s a hell of a time to sign up. Vicious pirates stalk the space lanes, claiming to fight an oppressive economic system even as they shed innocent blood. Civil war looms beyond the borders of Tanner’s home star system of Archangel. Corporate security fleets are nowhere to be found when trouble arises.In response, Archangel begins ambitious military expansion. Basic training becomes six months of daily bare knuckle brawls, demanding cross-training and constant stress. Brutal as it is, Tanner will need the preparation. The pirates grow more audacious with every attack. As if that’s not enough, Tanner is assigned to a small ship whose disgruntled crew has no patience for cerebral new recruits, and they’re on the front lines of all of Archangel’s woes.Tanner soon learns there is only one way to deal with his bullying comrades, their ruthless foes and the unforgiving void of space, and that’s to get up close and personal.

Forger of Worlds


Simon Archer - 2019
    Trade with neighboring Empires. Become a God. Garrett thought Terra Forma was just a game, but in reality, it was a test created by a devastatingly beautiful ancient goddess to find the most creative man in the universe. Now, in order to help her defeat an ancient primordial deity, Garrett will have to take a dirt rock and transform it into the heart of the most powerful empire the universe has ever seen. And to do that, he'll have to unlock portals to other worlds, harvest their resources, and bring back settlers to his world. Sure, it's a nearly impossible task, but at the same time, how often do you get the chance to play god? Warning: This book contains adult elements and sheer incredibleness.

Mark of the Founder


James T. Callum - 2020
    And they will not suffer another to join their ranks.Lost in a world with Levels, stats, and monsters, Hal fights to survive in an unforgiving land and escape execution from its rulers.Ingenuity and courage won’t be enough. With Marked powers he doesn’t understand, he’s easy prey for all the goblins, bandits, aberrations, and foul monsters that plague the realm.He’ll need to abandon his humanity by embracing the beast within. To fight monsters, one has to risk becoming a monster. If he can survive long enough to Level Up.Freedom and safety cannot be achieved alone. Only by forging bonds with fellow adventurers and monsters alike does Hal and his would-be-kingdom have any chance of surviving the hazardous realm.

Master of None


Shane Walker - 2019
    He's pretty much always been broke. A misspent youth led to mistakes which led to convictions and plea deals. No career, no education, no hope. Now he has a chance to make things right for him and his family when the newest immersive MMO comes with the ability to convert money earned in the game into real currency. Well, it's cryptocurrency but that's real-ish, right? Seeing an opportunity, Alex joins The Realms as Jack Alltrades, looking to make money any way he can. He may be a Master of None, but he's determined to learn every way possible to make money and turn his life around. Along the way, he'll find answers to important questions like: Can he win Employee of the Month? Do gnomes dream of electric sheep? How many kobolds does it take to swing a pickaxe? Can NPCs commit tax fraud? OK, maybe he won't answer most of those, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't come follow the high margin adventures of Jack Alltrades!

The Greyfriar


Clay Griffith - 2010
    It is now 2020 and a bloody reckoning is coming. Princess Adele is heir to the Empire of Equatoria, a remnant of the old tropical British Empire. When she becomes the target of a merciless vampire clan, her only protector is the Greyfriar, a mysterious hero who fights the vampires from deep within their territory. Their dangerous relationship plays out against an approaching war to the death between humankind and the vampire clans.The first book in a trilogy of high adventure and alternate history. Combining rousing pulp action with steampunk style, the Vampire Empire series brings epic political themes to life within a story of heartbreaking romance, sacrifice, and heroism.

Space Knight


Michael-Scott Earle - 2017
    But when his final mission as an Academy cadet goes horribly wrong, Nicholas discovers he possesses illegal magical abilities that grant him power far beyond that of a normal man, knight, or mage. When a clandestine assignment lands Nicholas on the worst starship in the kingdom’s fleet, he finds a motley crew of warriors hiding their own terrible secret. Death and betrayal lurk around every corner, and Nicholas finds himself torn between his loyalties to his new crew, or the oath he swore to his queen. And death no matter which choice he makes.

Super Sales on Super Heroes


William D. Arand - 2017
     He has the ability to modify any item he owns. To upgrade anything. Sounds great on paper. Almost like a video game. Except that the amount of power it takes to actually change, modify, or upgrade anything worthwhile is beyond his abilities. With that in mind, Felix settled into a normal life. A normal job. His entire world changes when the city he lives in is taken over by a Super Villain. Becoming a country of one city. A city state. Surprisingly, not a whole lot changed. Politicians were still corrupt. Banks still held onto your money. And criminals still committed crime. Though the black market has become more readily available. And in that not so black market, Felix discovers he has a way to make his power useful after all, and grasps a hold of his chance with both hands. Warning and minor spoiler: This novel contains graphic violence, undefined relationships/partial harem, unconventional opinions/beliefs, and a hero who is as tactful as a dog at a cat show. Read at your own risk.

Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones 1


Dem Mikhailov - 2020
    He had no specific plans for his new character. Little did he know that his new nickname Rosgard would become the game's next greatest legend.Even the game's Crèche zone may contain items of interest if you're observant enough. Rosgard's find didn't just change his own life drastically — it enveloped an entire game world in a turmoil to boot! The adventuring player becomes a valued prize for Waldyra's leading clans. Our hero has to conceal his real name, since he's in danger in real world as well, and that's no game anymore. There are millions at stake — and the currency in question isn't Monopoly money. Rosgard holds the key to wealth and power in both worlds.Should you play your own game or throw in your lot with the strongest? This is the question that needs to be answered by the protagonist, whose luck is incredible. Whose side does one take without becoming a pawn in anyone's game?Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones is a perfect example of a classical LitRPG novel. The events in the virtual world and the events in the real world mesh closely together as the plot thickens and becomes more and more dynamic from one book to another. The series has thousands of diehard fans in Russia! Now in English — for every true fan of the genre!

Stone Will


Kirill Klevanski - 2019
    Klevanski the #1 author on the 4 biggest self-publishing sites in Russia.The author has been writing the story for only three years, however, it already has 1500 chapters spanning 19 books. The whole story is planned out and will have over 2000 chapters and 22 books.Right now, "Dragon Heart" is being translated into English and published chapter by chapter on several American sites. Within a month, the story became popular with the foreign readers and caused quite a stir. On Royal Road, it currently holds the #2 spot in trending fictions and has gathered almost 2000 followers. On Creative Novels, it's being followed by over 1500 readers. Webnovel received the book warmly and the readers are eagerly waiting for new chapters. I hope you'll like my story, too. Blurb: he was born anew in a world where martial arts were indistinguishable from magic.He’d only received a neuronet and meaningless desires from his past life.What lies ahead?He’d dreamed of adventure and freedom, but those dreams were taken away from him.The same way his mother, father, and sister had been taken away.They took his Kingdom, they even took his destiny.But he is willing to wage a war, against the whole world if need be, to bring everything back.Even if a whole army opposes him, his sword won’t waver.Even if the Emperor sends entire legions against him, his step won’t falter.Even if demons and gods, heroes and villains alike, unite against him, he won’t bend to their will. His own will is iron itself, unstoppable.His name is Hadjar and he heeds the call of the dragon heart within him.This novel contains uncensored scenes of battle that may or may not include depictions of violence and gore. Read it at your own risk.P.S. If the aforementioned reasons aren’t enough to get you to read this story, there are also many great illustrations in the book.